Extinction
by ShadowGrace
Summary: Amon has disappeared, leaving a disgruntled Republic City in shambles. Korra, the Avatar, struggles to master airbending while trying to keep the peace in a city that is still fighting itself. And to make matters worse, a member of her team has gone missing. Can the Avatar return the city to its glory and hold her team together? Makorra. Irosami. Rated T.
1. Nightmares

_**Full Summary: Amon has disappeared, leaving a disgruntled Republic City in shambles. Korra, the Avatar, struggles to master airbending while trying to keep the peace in a city that is still fighting itself. She knows that there is something bigger going on out there – Amon won't give up so easily. And to make matters worse, she's still dealing with the aftereffects of losing her bending, if only for a short while. But when a member of her team goes missing and Team Avatar threatens to fall apart, she has to find a way to not only hold the city together, but to hold her friends together as well.**_

**CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR THE SEASON ONE FINALE.**

**Sorry for my improper use of capital letters, but I wanted to make sure that everyone knew that this is post-season one. I, like many others, am hopelessly excited for season two. And I must say that I was very pleased with how things turned out in the finale. (Go Makorra!)**

**This is rated T for TEEN, just to be on the safe side. Especially with fight scenes and possibly a little bit of romance.**

**I do not own the Legend of Korra TV series.**

_Extinction_

_1: Nightmares_

My nightmares were always the same.

They always started out with me hiding. The location changed – Air Temple Island, the pro-bending arena, the little gym and the area that had once been Mako and Bolin's home. But it was the only thing that ever changed. I was always hiding, always scared of what might happen, always a little clueless to how it would pan out. I had always been a little too quick to jump into something, and now it was going to be the reason that I was stuck facing my greatest enemy without a foolproof plan.

But in my dream, I _knew_ what would happen. And it wasn't anything good. It was like my mind fully focused on the moments when Amon found me. My dreams drew out the moments where Amon had held me against my will. Bloodbending wasn't anything like I thought it would be, not that I thought it was some great power or anything. It was more like I wasn't expecting it. I knew a lot about bloodbending, mostly from the lessons Katara had taught me. I hadn't attempted it because it was dark and so completely _wrong_. But Amon didn't seem to have a problem with that. It was just that I wasn't prepared for the feeling of it. You can't imagine what it's like to be bloodbended unless you've been forced against your will like that.

The worst pain, though, wasn't when Amon held me against my will. It was when the words of a past dream came back to haunt me – _"When I take your bending away, you'll be _nothing." Amon had forced me down, and he had put a finger to my forehead, and just like that, it was gone. I had lost my bending, and with it went all of my energy.

Those were the moments that were forever burned into my mind. And no matter how many times I'd been reminded that my past life, Aang, had returned my bending to me, and that I'd actually moved forward with my Avatar training, I couldn't forget what it was like to be completely helpless. It was my greatest fear… because Amon had been right. I was nothing without my bending.

Tonight, when my nightmare hit me, I knew it was just a dream the moment I was stuck in fitness room where everything really had happened, the arena completely overtaken by Amon. But that didn't mean that I could slide out of it easily. I had to relive every moment of it. I remembered every pain as I struggled to fight past Amon. I remembered every moment where I'd been useless, a fallen Avatar without a future.

But this time, the nightmare continued past the moment when Amon had looked me right in the eye and taken my bending. I saw, all over again, Mako shooting Amon with a bright blue lightning bolt and scooping me up before taking off down the hallway. But we hadn't gotten far. In life, Amon had never managed to take Mako's bending because I'd figured out how to airbend in that critical moment. But in my nightmare, I still hadn't managed to unlock whatever secret was hidden deep down inside me, and I'd had to watch Mako's bending be stolen from him.

I woke up at that with a scream. Sweat dripped down my forehead, sticking my hair to my skin. I took heavy breaths, leaning forward and dropping my head into my hands. Why couldn't I get past it? It should've been easy enough. Amon was _gone_. Tears came to my eyes, and I struggled to make sure that they didn't start to stream down my cheeks. I was _not_ going to cry over something that had not happened, that I had not already fixed. I had my bending back and I'd actually moved forward in my air training and with my spiritual self, and Mako had never had his bending taken away. If he had, I would've returned it, just like I returned Lin's and half of the city's. It was useless to cry about it, a waste of time and energy.

I hadn't had a nightmare in weeks. And even then, I always managed to calm down and pretend to be sleeping when someone pulled back the sliding door to my room. In my most recent freak-out, nobody had even come, finally deciding that I was never in trouble. But this time was worse, far worse.

The sliding door opened and I looked up, brushing the back of my hand across my cheek. He must have run all the way from the men's dormitory, which meant that my scream was embarrassingly loud. Mako looked like he had just thrown on his clothes and boots. He'd even taken the time to wrap his scarf loosely around his neck. Bolin came running after him, sliding past my room as he struggled to pull on a boot. I heard him slip and fall, crashing into the end of the hallway. Mako didn't even look at his brother, preferring to step into my room. I could see, in the moonlight, that there was a look of relief on his face. I hadn't been stolen out of my bed and no one had broken into my bedroom. But there was concern in his eyes, too.

"Korra," Mako said quietly, sitting on the edge of my bed. I just barely saw Bolin step into the room before I turned my face away from the two of them. Mako put a hand on my shoulder. I tried to shrug him away, but that didn't stop him. "Was it another one of your nightmares?"

Everyone on Air Temple Island knew that I had nightmares. Apparently, I looked like the walking dead the morning after I'd had one. But Tenzin and Mako were the only ones that knew exactly what was going on in them. I trusted the both of them with my life, and even though I trusted the others, too, they were the top two around here. Besides, Tenzin was my teacher, and Mako was the guy that just happened to have my heart.

I nodded, looking up at him under my lashes. "It was you too, this time," I whispered to him. The tears had pretty much disappeared, now, but I knew that my lashes were still sticking together, damp. I had managed to get my emotions under control before I really started sobbing, though, and that was a relief.

Mako closed his eyes momentarily, letting out a sigh. I knew I was being ridiculous. Why couldn't I just push it all behind me and move on with my life? I had survived Amon's attack, as had my friends. Mako's hands tightened into fists for a moment and he let out a warm breath. He opened his hand, proving to me that he still had his firebending, a small flame dancing on his palm. He only kept it there for a moment before extinguishing it. "We're okay, Korra. We're all okay." His words were quiet, whispered only to me.

Bolin cleared his throat from the doorway. "Well, it looks like you two have this all figured out. So, uh, I'm just going to go back to sleep. Uh… sweet dreams!" He added. Mako sent a glare over his shoulder, but his brother was already gone down the hallway, disappearing from view.

I shook my head, pushing back the covers. "I'm being stupid, I know. I just keep remembering it all over again. And I know I should just forget it and move on, but…." I sighed. I didn't want to admit to him that I was scared, though, like Tenzin, Mako seemed to have a sense of intuition when it came to what I was feeling, despite the fact that I was doing my best to hide it.

Mako stood up, reaching for my hand. "Come on. It's early, but that doesn't mean it's too early to go outside and get some fresh air." I ran my fingers through my hair, reaching for my boots. He was right. Even though my window was open, I still needed somewhere that wasn't so cramped. We stepped into the hallway, walking silently down to the pavilion where the ancient airbending doors were. We took a seat on the steps in front of it, overlooking the lights that still glowed in Republic City.

It wasn't bad, our silence. I actually kind of liked it. In the moments since Mako had told me that he loved me, and I'd told him that I loved him in return, we'd grown more comfortable around each other. I guess it was because we weren't forcing away our feelings anymore. I had refused to give into it because Mako had made it clear that he liked me but didn't feel the way I did about him. Mako pushed me away because of his involvement with Asami, Hiroshi Sato's only daughter. Asami and Mako had had… a thing, I guess. Apparently, they'd ended it before Mako and I had confessed how we truly felt about each other down at the South Pole. I figured that Asami and I, who had slowly become friends, would be awkward around each other.

And I guess we were, sort of. It was never easy being friends with Asami, honestly. She seemed to like me, and I liked her well enough, but it wasn't that easy. She was absolutely gorgeous – Meelo could attest to that – and she was a skilled fighter and not at all a prissy rich girl that needed to be looked after. But Asami had never been rude to me. In fact, she'd been nice to me, easily becoming a part of Team Avatar. The thing that I had with Mako sort of made waves, but we were all friends still, and that was a relief. I wasn't sure what I would do if we hadn't had our entire group. We kept each other sane, for the most part.

Finally, I glanced over at him. "I don't think Amon's dead." I told him. The status of Amon's life had been speculated on multiple times. He'd disappeared from Republic City with his brother, councilman Tarrlok, in tow. A boat had been taken and its whereabouts weren't known. As far as we knew, it hadn't landed on any shores, and it wasn't like the two of them could float around on that boat forever. People thought that they had drowned, that a storm had hit the boat or something like that, but I wasn't so sure. Amon had managed to survive countless battles and had sent an entire city into a war with itself. It seemed unrealistic for me to assume that something like a storm could take out an extremely strong waterbender.

Mako let out a heavy, Tenzin-worthy sigh. "I don't think he's dead, either. It seems sort of impossible, doesn't it?"

"Exactly what I was thinking," I agreed. Leaves dusted the ground. With a slight motion, I pushed all the leaves together with air. It was nice to be able to airbend. It had taken so long for me to discover the power. I was starting to think that it was absolutely hopeless when I first managed to airbend. "I think every Avatar, at least, every recent Avatar, has had at least one major enemy they need to fight against. Aang's was Firelord Ozai. Mine is Amon."

"You're not alone. Just like Aang had all his friends, you have us." He replied.

I glanced over at him, a slight smile crossing my face. Mako and I had met because I'd broken Tenzin's rules and snuck into the pro-bending arena. He hadn't been impressed with me at all, but I guess it was safe to say that he really interested me after just a few meetings. All it took was one compliment from him, and I'd discovered that there was something about Mako that was different from everyone else. I hadn't figured it out yet, and honestly, I still wasn't sure what it was. But just seeing him – red scarf, fingerless gloves, and slightly bitter smirk – made me feel better.

"Yeah, and I guess we'll have to wait." I snorted. I hated waiting. It was something that Tenzin would have suggested. I wanted to jump into a fight and get things done. Waiting was not my specialty, and Mako knew it. He smirked, a low chuckle escaping.

"Until then," He said calmly, "We've got to figure out how to fix Republic City."

I sighed. He was right. For some reason, I had figured that when Amon's true identity as Tarrlok's brother, Noatak, a waterbender and bloodbender, had been revealed, the whole Equalist party would disband. Even though they had lost their leader, some of the extremists still held on to the principles Amon had preached. Republic City still hadn't gotten back to its peacefulness that it had when Avatar Aang had still been alive. And it was my job to make sure that it went back to the way it was. I couldn't do anything about Amon until he returned from hiding.

I shook my head. "That's easier said than done."

"Isn't everything?" Mako asked with a smirk. I grinned at him.

"You don't have to be so sarcastic all the time." I replied. But he still managed to make me laugh. Just a little bit.

# # #

Tenzin had council business to attend to, and Pema was fully focused on Rohan. It meant that my training was continued with Jinora and Ikki while Mako and Bolin kept Meelo occupied. Mako was a little weary about the kids – who in their right mind wouldn't be? – but Bolin was a natural with them. I had the feeling it was because Bolin maintained a childish humor that made him one of the funniest people I had ever met.

"You have to spin the air underneath you in a ball, see!" Ikki called out, creating a sphere underneath her. She rode it like a scooter, screaming with joy as she flew across the pavilion.

Jinora stood pleasantly in front of me. "Focus on it, Korra," She said pleasantly. "Remember, it won't come to you as easily as everything else did."

"Don't remind me," I replied, blowing a loose piece of hair out of my eyes. I tried again, creating a ball of air before going to leap on top of it. I managed it after a few more tries. "I did it!" I said loudly, a huge smile breaking across my face. Jinora gave me the easy, shy smile that she always gave me when I managed to do something new. She created an air scooter herself and Ikki flew back into the area, nearly knocking me over.

"Come on, Korra!" She said in a high-pitched screech. "I dare you to race me!"

"You're on," I called back, pushing myself forward. It really did feel like I was flying. Although my skills with airbending were fairly new, like everything else, I had managed to figure out how to work the combat side of things. What I needed to work on were the techniques. I wasn't sure how, but the practice moves that I had memorized seemed completely different now that I could actually airbend. It was sort of like starting over again.

But it still wasn't as close to flying as it could've been. Even though I had moved through my training fairly quickly, Tenzin still didn't trust me with a glider. I guess I couldn't blame him for that. I wouldn't trust me with a glider, either.

Ikki and I nearly ran into each other. She laughed loudly as I struggled to keep the air moving. Unlike the other elements, air hadn't come to me as easily. I'd mastered water, earth, and fire by the time I was seventeen, and I was just now getting started with air. The other elements hadn't required much focus for me. They were second nature. But if I wasn't paying a decent amount of attention, I was prone to making mistakes with my airbending.

I turned myself around, searching for Ikki, when Jinora flew by. We barely managed to dodge each other, and I lost my balance. The sphere underneath my disappeared and I fell flat to the ground. Jinora lightly came to her feet in front of me. Ikki raced over, nearly dropping on top of me. She got down on her hands and knees and pressed her cheek to the warm stone path, her eyes level with mine.

"Are you okay, Korra?" She asked, a huge smile on her face. Even though she was obviously full of concern, amusement and mischief showed in her eyes.

Laughter burst from where Bolin and Mako were entertaining Meelo. Meelo was a great airbender – he, like his older sisters, had helped Lin take out some chi-blockers. But he had an attention span more like Ikki's than Jinora's and couldn't sit still for long. "I'm fine," I said through clenched teeth, sitting up and brushing the back of my hand across my face.

"Don't worry, you'll get it." Jinora said, holding out a hand. I took it lightly and she helped me up. She glanced at the nearby clock and said, "We're supposed to start meditation now." She motioned to Ikki and Meelo. The youngest of the kids jumped up from in front of Bolin and Pabu. Mako and Bolin followed us to the gazebo that Tenzin had always made us meditate in.

In his time here, Bolin had taken a really big interest in my training. The guy had a curiosity that was worse than Ikki's. Tenzin had explained the basics to him. Even non-benders and other benders could meditate. It helped to calm the mind and body. It was something that Bolin couldn't do as easily as Mako could, but he still did better than I did when I first started. It was understandable that Mako did it so easily. He had to grow up at an early age, and that sort of responsibility had stuck with him for life. Not only was he fiercely protective, but he was also pretty calm and collected. He could bend lightning, after all. It took a calm and steady mind to do that. It was one reason why I had never been able to bend lightning. Apparently I was too high-strung for it.

Jinora took her father's usual place, crossing her legs in front of her and resting her hands on her knees. She closed her eyes. Ikki, who was usually as high-wired as Meelo, sat down quietly at my side and did the same. Meelo spent this time to get a nap in, which didn't really bother anyone else. I sat down as Mako folded his legs beside me. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes.

In the time since I'd discovered that I had opened the spiritual gate between me and my past lives, Aang had been more present in my life. He told me about how Roku, the Avatar before him, had always been around to help lead him through everything. Aang had easily taken that position, leading me through the spirit world just like his son taught me how to airbend.

I took a deep breath, keeping my eyes closed and opening up my mind. It was becoming easier, now. It only took a little while for me to find the rhythm, and in a few more minutes, I felt like I had been transported elsewhere. Aang stood in front of me in his traditional airbender garb, the arrow on his forehead clearly visible. "Hello again, Korra," He said calmly.

"Hi," I answered, looking around. There were times, Aang told me, when you had to return your spirit to your body. Aang always made sure that I got there safely, since he always took me away from the place where my body laid in wait. It was too easy for me to get distracted by whoever and whatever was surrounding my physical body. It was sort of surreal, actually. The wind in the physical world would blow and ruffle my hair, but I wouldn't actually _feel_ it. And then there was the fact that I couldn't touch anybody. My hand just passed through them.

In short, it hadn't taken long for Aang to decide that my lessons were better elsewhere.

Aang sat down in front of me. He had taught me the basics of what he had given me when my bending had been blocked by Amon, the power that gave me the ability to block and unblock another's bending. Only done in the Avatar state, it was called energybending, and an Avatar was the only one that could perform it. It was decided that Amon had used bloodbending to sever the connection between a bender and his bending. Energybending was much stronger than he could ever be. That was sort of relief.

"Your battle is far from being over." He told me calmly, his gaze meeting mine. Aang never seemed rushed. He never seemed like he was about to freak out or give me some terrible news. It was sort of weird to imagine that he had been my past life. I was never calm. How could he and I be reincarnations of the same person?

"I figured," I told him, taking a seat in front of him.

Aang didn't show any surprise. "I'm not just talking about Republic City, Korra, though that does need to take the forefront of your list of things to do. Republic City is supposed to be the center of peace between benders and non-benders. When Amon was still present, other cities were starting to fall into his trap. You and your friends need to balance the city, and in turn the others will fall back into their shared peace."

I sighed and put my elbows on my knees. "You know, you're like the thirtieth person to tell me that. And honestly, I'm trying. But it's sort of hard, you know, when the people you're trying to convince immediately dislike me because I'm what they're fighting against _four times over_."

A small smirk crossed Aang's face. "You've heard my story. I'm not one for bragging, but I had to do what was considered impossible. Korra, you're better trained than I ever was when it came time for me to face my greatest enemy. But it wasn't just me. I had my friends. I even had former enemies as friends." He smiled, looking like he was living in a memory for a moment. I figured that he was talking about his friend, Firelord Zuko. I'd heard their story many times. First enemies, and then master and student, and then good friends. "My point is that you need to let your friends help you. You don't need to take all of this on your own. And you don't need to keep things from them. They'll understand. They _want_ to help you."

"What if I don't want their help?" I asked, a little more sharply than I meant to. "I doubt they'll have any faith in me if I tell them that Amon is still lurking in the darkest corner of my dreams. Aang, think about it. Amon was _right_. I'm _nothing_ without my bending. What kind of Avatar can't bend?"

"But you can bend." My past life looked at me with a raised eyebrow.

"That's not my point. What I'm trying to say is that these people trust me to make sure that the entire world is safe. They want to get rid of bending forever. But if they do that, I can't do anything to help them. And honestly, I'm sure that some of them are just _dying_ to get rid of me."

"Not everyone is going to be your friend." Aang replied. "And yes, these people do trust you to make everything right for them. It's a heavy burden to bear. But you have done it, time and time again. What makes you think you can't handle it this time?"

I stood up. "Thanks for the pep talk, Aang." I said.

"I'm not through yet." He said calmly. I paused, glancing at my past life. I was sure that I looked shocked. What more could there be? Was he going to tell me that Amon really had survived, and that he was planning another attack? Was he going to take me down again?

"You have to keep Republic City at the front of your mind, but also be reminded about your group. Your friends are your greatest allies. And they are important to your success."

"That's so cryptically helpful." I said.

"It's about as direct as I can get. Good luck, Korra."

With that, Aang was gone, and I was blinking away the blinding white-blue light that filled my eyes whenever I went into the Avatar state. In front of me sat Mako. He was leaning against the boards of the gazebo, his gaze settled on the roof. His fingers played idly with the scarf around his neck. I glanced around. Jinora and the others were gone. I wasn't sure how long I'd been in the Avatar state, but apparently it was long enough that the others had gotten tired of their meditating and had left me to it.

Mako glanced at me, a smile crossing his face. "Hey," He said pleasantly.

"Hi," I said back, a little awkwardly. I didn't know what it was. I was a witty, sharp-tongued girl with an attitude bigger than Republic City. But all Mako had to do was look at me and I was a mushy bunch of noodles. "Where are the others?"

"Tenzin returned from his council meeting. The others went to see how it's going. And he wants to take us out to Republic City to see how the repairs are coming on the city."

I barely managed to not flinch. The first repairs had immediately started on Air Temple Island, returning it to its former glory from the headquarters Amon had made it. Once it was back to usual, the repairs had spread all over the central areas of Republic City, the places that everyone passed by or thought about. Tenzin believed that it would be better to fix them first, because it they were the places that the community came to for order and fun and _peace_, which was the major goal. That meant that the council's chambers were being fixed, since they were still damaged from my fight with Tarrlok, and the pro-bending arena was being carefully repaired.

"Sounds good," I said, standing up. I reached out a hand to help Mako up. He took it, and he didn't let go after he was standing. Instead, he weaved his fingers through mine, squeezing my hand briefly, a slight smirk on his lips. Mako and I had never really been all that public with our affection, though it was understood between us that we were closer than two people could ever be. I had once told him that I believed that we were meant for each other. That still stood, and this time it was reciprocated for the both of us.

He leaned forward to press his lips gingerly to mine. I immediately reacted, my free hand going to wrap around the end of his scarf, pulling him closer to me. One of his hands rested on my waist, his fingers digging into my side.

Our moment of affection was immediately ended, though, when someone cleared their throat loudly. Tenzin stood at side of the gazebo, looking in. There was a frown on his face, but I could tell that it wasn't very serious. He was just as pleased as I was that I had found someone like Mako. But he pretty much insisted on keeping up the pretense that he believed my training took the front of everyone's list.

It wasn't true. Not really. I mean, it was way up there, along with returning Republic City to its peacefulness, defeating Amon for good, and loving Mako. But still, there were some other things that weighed more heavily on my mind. I had made great strides in my training. I just needed a reprieve every now and then.

"Are you two ready for our trip to the arena?"

"Of course!" I said. I had loved the arena. It was a place that I had always dreamed of going to. It was the place where I had met two of my best friends. It was the place where I had played on a pro-bending team and nearly won the Championship. I couldn't wait for the arena to be fixed. Even with everything weighing in on me, I wanted to be able to say that I was still a part of the Fire Ferrets, that we were still planning on taking the Championship pot in this next season. I just hoped that, when it was fully repaired, that Mako and Bolin wouldn't return to live there.

By the way Mako's hand tightened on mine, I didn't think he was going to leave me to return to paying rent for the small apartment he shared with his brother.

At least, he better not. Or else I would blast him into the bay.

**What do you guys think? It was surprisingly difficult to write from Korra's point of view, and I honestly can't really say why.**

**Anywho. I would really appreciate it if you could review in the box below. Comments and criticism are wanted. Though I ask that you don't tear into me like a hungry wolf who hasn't eaten in three weeks. Guest reviews are turned on, so I trust that those that review as guests won't write anything that is not accepted in the guidelines of FanFiction, or that start fights or that are just plain rude. (Like I said, I want comments and criticism, but I don't want to cry because of meanness. Not that I would cry. Really.)**

**I apologize in advance for grammatical and spelling errors. I tend to write and upload immediately without rereading. Yes. I am sort of lazy. :P**

**Thank you for taking the time to read! If you enjoyed it, favorite it or whatever, and make sure to check back for updates! Peace (:**


	2. Organized Attack

**JMV1997 – Haha, I think Tenzin just has that sort of air about him. He is sort of scary, after all...**

**xXxDaughteroftheKingxXx – Ahh, I see. I'll admit that I've never exactly been very good at punctuation. I know, that sounds a little ridiculous, but it's mostly because I like commas so much that I put them everywhere, even when they aren't needed. Thank you for the correction on dialogue! I'll be sure to try to catch that in the future. As for the POVs, thanks for the advice! I usually only write in one narrator, and I was planning on making it Korra. The only other narrator would possibly be the missing team member. (; Thanks for the review!**

**Guest – Why thank you! (:**

**Heat in Freezing – I always say, there's no story if there's no drama! I love Mako and Korra, too! They're so cute together. There's just something about a slightly argument-ridden relationship that I love (strange, I know.)**

**makorra123 – Thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying it!**

**chinkyandproud2b – Thanks! I plan on continuing this story unless it just sort of falls between the cracks (but here's to hoping that doesn't happen.) (;**

**fireicegirl16 – Good to see you elsewhere, other than the Darkest Powers corner of fanfiction. Haha! (: I love Makorra, too! I was a Zutara fan when it was Aang's story (and I still harbor some serious depression that it didn't work out) but I'm glad that we've got some lovely Makorra action!**

**This chapter has a little fighting action. You've been warned!**

**I do not own the Legend of Korra TV series.**

_2: Organized Attack_

Tenzin was silent as we rode the airboat to the docks of Republic City. Bolin had decided to join us on our ride, Pabu, his Fire Ferret, hanging onto his shoulder. Asami and General Iroh, who had sort of become inducted into the newest version of Team Avatar, were already in Republic City. The two of them had grown incredibly close since Amon disappeared. Iroh had decided to stay at Republic City since it was the heart of the problem. He was working with Tenzin and his brother, Bumi, to figure out how to politically fix the city. My job was just to make sure that the people stopped using Equalist weapons against benders, as well as capturing still-active Chi-Blockers. It didn't bother me much. I hated politics. But I could handle a couple fights.

I leaned on the side of the boat and looked down at the water. My eyes reflected in the water were a clearer, deeper blue than they were when I looked in the mirror. My form wavered as the boat cut through the water. I thought about helping to propel us forward but decided against it. The last time I'd done that, it had ruined Tenzin's rhythm with the air and nearly tipped the boat over. It was safe to say that he hadn't been too pleased with me.

Another shape came next to me, dark with a spot of red, his form just a mess of colors until he was leaning right next to me on the railing. Mako's hand hung over the rail, drumming a beat against the wood. With a slight sigh I leaned against him a little bit, content to just have him nearby. It had been so long where all I'd done was fight the attraction I felt to him and hope that he couldn't see it. Things between us were always a little tense, to say the least. But now, it was like we moved around each other, like two things orbiting each other endlessly and easily.

His free hand snaked around my waist, drawing me even closer into his side. His warmth spread over the both of us, despite the fact that it wasn't really all that cold. And even though it wasn't necessary needed, I was glad I had it. His hand came away from my side and went to my neck, massaging my muscles. I closed my eyes momentarily. I was always tired after a nightmare, always a little tense and on edge. Jumpy.

Mako took in a breath, and I was sure he was about to say something when something ran into me from my other side, shoving me into Mako. My eyes flung open as I grabbed onto the railing, instinctively pushing back. Bolin hung over the railing at the waist, holding on to Pabu's tail. "No, little buddy! Don't go after the fish!" He called out. Pabu struggled against him, and Bolin cried, "I just gave you a bath!" Pabu paused, as if he was considering it, and then he hung there while Bolin pulled him back up over the railing.

Pabu sat down in between us and twitched his nose, looking between the three of us as if we would have something to give him. Mako leaned forward, his eyebrows slightly drawn together. "Bolin," he complained, drawing out his brother's name with a sigh. Bolin looked up a little sheepishly and nudged Pabu.

"Sorry, guys," he said, motioning towards Pabu. He and his Fire Ferret slid away, whistling softly as he disappeared to the other side of the boat. I rolled my eyes and nudged Mako, and he gave me a nudge back.

"I've been thinking," Mako began, glancing over at me a little nervously. His red scarf was slightly torn on the ends from the wear and age. "How, exactly, do you plan on capturing Chi-Blockers and rallying the pro-bending troops while avoiding scrutiny?"

"I'm not really sure." I answered with a sigh. "Honestly, I thought Chief Beifong would be helping me with the Equalists. I mean, if I continue to just go after them alone and transport them to the jail, I'll probably get called all sorts of names. I know that the Equalists' numbers are down, but do you remember how many there _were_? It was like they were all the non-benders in the entire city."

"Do you think it's going to mean that we're going to need a bigger jail? Or are we going to have to do some recon work?"

"Honestly, since building a bigger jail would only freak them out, I think we're going to have to go undercover. Ever since Amon left, we've been a little clueless as to what they're going to do. I mean, I know that they aren't exactly sure what they're going to do either, and since Amon's lieutenant turned against him I doubt they made him their new leader."

"Do you think they chose a new leader?"

"That's what I would've done." I answered. "Think about it. All those Equalists joined in the rallies because someone talked them into it. They need guidance. And since Amon's not there to give it…."

"They're going to choose someone else." Mako finished, nodding. "It makes sense. But my only problem is how they're going to do that. Who could they possibly choose?" He asked. "It would have to be someone higher up, someone who was closer to Amon and helped make their plans."

"Or it's someone that wasn't very good friends with Amon. They like his principles, not him, now. Ever since they've found out that he's a waterbender and a bloodbender, they probably want nothing to do with him." I glanced over at him, and he was chewing on his bottom lip. I knew that look. It meant that he had something on his mind that could help us. "What is it?"

"I was wondering if Hiroshi has taken control of them. He's obviously a non-bender, and the others know that. He has a motive to continue. He completely believes in the non-bender revolution. And he's plenty mad that Asami won't join him. He tried to _kill_ her last time he saw her. Who's to say that he's not looking for revenge?"

"Plus, he was the one supplying the weapons, the mastermind behind them all. And he's got the money to help. I'm sure he's not going to be spending it on his house or Asami anymore." I added. "And they haven't even been talking about making more satomobiles. I think it's safe to say that he's abandoned the car industry."

Mako nodded. "There is that." He sighed heavily, glancing into the water for a second before looking up at me. "The only problem is that I'm not sure how Asami will react to it. We know that she's done with her father, but how is she going to feel about hunting him down?"

"Are you guys talking strategy?" Bolin asked, appearing from the other side of the red sail. Tenzin was still working the wind, keeping us in a straight path to Republic City. Mako glanced at his brother as he took up residence on my other side. "Because Pabu and I are totally willing to do some undercover work. Pabu's been working on his stealth. He's a sneaky Fire Ferret, this one." He said proudly.

Mako turned to look at the two of us, his side leaning against the railing. "We've been thinking about who could've taken Amon's place." He answered. "We're thinking that Hiroshi took his place."

"You mean Asami's dad Hiroshi?" Bolin asked, his eyes growing a little wider. "I mean, I guess. I just figured that they would be all over the place without Amon leading them."

"If that was the case then they wouldn't still be causing problems." I said with a slight groan, dropping my forehead onto my arms. "What they're doing takes planning, major planning."

"Well," Bolin said after a moment, "Hiroshi _does_ hate us. I mean, a lot of people hate us. Not just non-benders, but –"

"Bro," Mako said, cutting off his brother. I looked up to see him with his eyebrows drawn together, shaking his head at Bolin. The earthbender looked a little sheepish as he glanced down at me. When he caught me watching him, he gave me a blazingly bright smile. "Not helping."

"Not _everybody_ hates us, Korra."

"Thanks," I said, lifting my head to rest my chin on my clasped hands. I watched the water split for the ship, imagining myself back at the South Pole. I should have stayed there, honestly. I wasn't even supposed to come to Republic City. But I ignored my orders and came anyway. And when I'd arrived, I'd noticed that the city wasn't as perfect as I thought it was. It was sort of the reason that I ended up in Chief Lin Beifong's interrogation room. I sort of tore up the city while chasing away some Triple Threat Triad members. Tenzin hadn't been happy with me, to say the least.

But I was glad I came here, because then I wouldn't have met my friends. It always seemed like I met the best people when I didn't listen to anything other people were telling me. I wondered if that was just a coincidence or if it was sign. It was probably nothing. I was just stubborn, that was all.

The boat twisted as Tenzin brought it up to the dock. I jumped off the side, quickly followed by Mako and Bolin. The two of them moved to grab the ropes and tie the boat to the dock as Tenzin leapt to my side. He smooth out his airbender robes and ran a hand over his beard. "Let's go check out the councilmembers' office, and then we'll head to the arena," he said, glancing at us for approval.

I shrugged. I knew that Tenzin wanted to make sure the offices had been rebuilt. For once, the place wasn't torn up because of Amon. The reason that the building had been destroyed was my fault, mine and Tarrlok's. We'd had our own battle in his office, where I'd destroyed his waterfall before being pushed through the wall, where we broke the banister before dropping down into the main room, where the table and all of the benches were set up for hearings and meetings. Tenzin had been pretty sad to see the damage done to the building when everything had calmed down a little in the days after Amon left. I still sort of felt bad about it.

We followed Tenzin in silence. I knew that I should've asked him on his thoughts about Hiroshi and the Equalists, but I wasn't sure how he was going to take it. He was proud of me for taking down Amon – at least figuratively, since we still weren't sure of his whereabouts – and he was proud of me for discovering my airbending and finally being able to access the spirit world. I also knew that he wanted me to help fix up the city. It was sort of my job, after all. As Avatar, I was supposed to keep the peace. But I wasn't a fully realized Avatar, not yet, and I knew that Tenzin would prefer that I mastered airbending before running out into danger _again_.

As we neared the councilmembers' building, Mako and Bolin came up to flank either side of me. Pabu even crawled on top of Bolin's head, as if he were keeping a lookout. I held back a disgruntled sigh. I hated having other people take care of me like I couldn't take care of myself. They didn't used to do this. They used to follow me. But now they stood right at my side, as if they were going to protect me from anyone rushing towards us. Sure, I wanted them by my sides, but I didn't want to have the feeling that they thought I was so useless that I couldn't handle myself.

I just dropped my head, counting the stones I stepped over. Tenzin stayed in front of our group, pausing only when he reached the front of the arena. "It's looking nice, I'd say."

"Uh, Tenzin? The outside looks great and all, but wasn't it the inside that was destroyed?" Bolin asked.

Tenzin gave Bolin an exasperated look and headed up towards the front doors. He pushed open the doors, leading us into the hallway that was outside the main meeting room. Tenzin pushed open the next set of double doors, leading into the meeting room. The banister had been repaired, and the floor had been redone. The benches sat in straight lines and the front U-shaped table was pristine.

Bolin let out a low whistle as we stepped into the room. "Classy," he said. Pabu chattered on his shoulder. I glanced over at them with a smile. Tenzin turned to go check up on the room that had once belonged to Councilman Tarrlok. I sat down in one of the benches and put my feet up on the back of the one in front of me. Bolin flopped down on the one across the aisle, and Pabu balanced on the back of it.

"I wonder what the arena's going to look like," he mused. "Do you think that they're going to completely redo it? I gave them some pointers, you know. I said, _why don't you guys make the loft apartment a little roomier_? I also said, _we need some updated stuff in the training gyms_."

I sat up a little in my seat. "You guys aren't moving back to the arena after they fix it, are you?" Fear spiked through me. It was hard enough to keep watch on the entire city without having to worry about where the two of them were. And to be honest, I'd gotten used to the idea of them at Air Temple Island. They were my family, and it would be wrong to send them back there. Besides that, I _wanted_ them nearby. Mako felt like home to me, and life would certainly be boring without Bolin.

The two brothers glanced at each other, and I felt my stomach drop a little more. I figured that they would have discussed it. It's something that Mako wouldn't have let go. But the way they were looking at each other made my skin feel a little clammy and my heart pound in my chest a little harder. I started to stand up when I heard Tenzin closing the doors upstairs.

Mako cleared his throat and looked over at me. "We just didn't want to wear out our welcome at Air Temple Island. I'm sure Tenzin and Pema don't want us hanging around any longer than we have to."

"You can't go back there," I stated. I was usually able to control my emotions. Instead of letting him know how fearful I was of the idea, I let out the side of me that said I could do anything and handle anyone. It sounded like I was angry at him, challenging him. "It's dangerous! They don't mind if you're there." I said. Bolin looked up at his brother, and I knew that he was sort of begging Mako to let them stay, too. Bolin had fallen in love with the way things were done on Air Temple Island. Not only did he like the airbender children, but they weren't required to pay rent and the food was always plentiful. It was a far cry from where they were, borrowing money for food and working odd jobs to pay their rent.

But Mako was just too proud to let the Air Acolytes help them. To let _me_ help them. I grabbed a hold of his gloved hand, yanking him towards me. "Please don't leave," I whispered to him. It horrified me to think that I would be left alone on Air Temple Island without them. Besides, Asami couldn't go live with them in the arena, and Iroh was staying with us on the island as well as Tenzin's brother, Bumi. It was our headquarters, and I couldn't have half of my team across the bay.

But mostly, I was terrified at the thought of them being apart from me.

Mako looked down at me, and I knew that he could read through my emotions. He was the only one that had been able to really tell when I was lying. He was the only one that could look me in the eyes and know that I was hiding something. I hated looking weak. I hated being scared. I hated feeling like I couldn't handle it. And he knew it.

Before he could answer me – I could see Bolin giving him the full-on pout face with large eyes and a bottom lip stuck out – Tenzin stepped back into the room. "All is looking well. Let's go see the arena." He swept towards the front doors. Bolin slipped out of his chair with Pabu close on his heels. I held Mako there for a moment, begging him to answer me right then and there.

I didn't get the chance to hear what he decided, though, because I heard Bolin call out for help. Mako and I looked at each other for a moment before darting out of the room, starting down the steps. I almost slipped on them in my rush. Tenzin was battling what looked to be one of Hiroshi's bots. Bolin brought up a wall of rock and looked over at us with wide eyes.

"A little help, please!" He called out as one of the bots crashed into the wall. Mako took off towards his brother and I skipped down the steps, going to Tenzin's side. Before I could even reach him, though, another bot came from behind the building. One of its claw-like hands was sparking with blue electricity. Its arm shout out at me and I dodged it, jumping over it as the claw buried itself into the ground. Lightly landing on the outstretched arm, I used my momentum to push me up. With a little burst of air, I propelled myself up and over it, smashing down on top of it.

I am Water Tribe by nationality, but I've found that I like firebending the best. Part of it is because it matches my personality so much better. Spontaneous. Wild. _Fiery_. And part of it was that it was solely based on power. Air was about circles. Water was about soothing motions. Earth was about having a strong base. But fire… fire was about _power_. And it was a relief to feel that power whenever I punched through the glass plate on the front of the bot.

One of its clawed hands grabbed me by the waist and ripped me off, flinging me into the side of the building. Tenzin turned last second and made a pocket of air that caught me before I slammed into the wall. Landing lightly on my feet, I jumped forward, kicking up several chunks of rocks. I kicked them off towards the bot, one of them nearly hitting Bolin in the back as he dodged another bot. The bot I faced took off rolling towards me in a charge. The electricity shot off its hand and I ducked. It looked like Hiroshi had survived the fight between him and his daughter without many injuries, since he was able to make sure that these bots were upgraded. They were tougher.

Momentarily distracted, I was hit with a wild arm. It didn't have electricity pulsing down it, but it was enough to send me flying. My body glanced off of the stone pavilion as I rolled to a stop. I lay there for a second, wishing that I could just disappear. Or that I could just blow all of the bots into the water, where they would short circuit. I heard the whir of one of the arms as it shot at me. Rolling backwards, I flipped over and got my feet underneath me. With a strong stomp, the stone pavilion rose, taking a hold of the bot's extended arm. I jumped on top of the block and headed back up to the operator.

The person sitting inside of the bot was wearing dark Equalist clothing. He even had the mask of a Chi-Blocker over his head, the goggles coloring his eyes a yellow shade. I leapt forward, reaching into the bot for the controls. Asami had told me that the inside of the bot was exactly the same as a satomobile. That would have been helpful if I knew how to drive. But I didn't, so I just yanked on it. The entire bot jerked forward as I fought to pull the guy out of the suit.

He punched me off again and I collided into Bolin, knocking both of us down on the ground hard. The two bots that we'd been fighting converged on us as we scrambled to get up. One of the clawed arms shot out. Electricity popped off its metal grasp right before it collided with Bolin. He yelled out in pain and I whirled, kicking away the arm.

Bolin laid on the ground next to me as I circled around, trying to figure out how to pull him to safety without getting electrocuted. Just as I was starting to think that I wasn't going to get out of it easily, Mako landed on the top of one of the bots. It looked like he and Tenzin had managed to destroy one of them, and Tenzin had taken a moment to propel Mako into the air. He reached forward and grabbed the buckles holding the operator into the bot.

I turned and grabbed a hold of Bolin underneath both arms, dragging him away from the bots. He was out cold, and he would probably need some healing. I looked up just in time to see a gray van come careening around to corner. The back popped open and Chief Beifong jumped out, followed by her force of metalbenders. I sighed in relief as the went to work tying down the rest of the bots. Mako and Tenzin helped to keep the operators under control as they were arrested and filed into the back of the van.

I knelt down next to Bolin and rolled up the sleeve of his shirt. He had a red mark where the clawed arm had caught him. I looked around briefly for some water. Katara had once told me that when she was my age, she carried around a small skin full of water for use. I probably should have listened to her. But in a place like Republic City, I thought that water would have been easy to find. My eyes found a puddle of water, and although it wasn't the clean and pure water I was looking for, I pulled it over to me, pulling out as much of the toxins as I could before letting it coat my hands and pressing it to Bolin's arm. He groaned as the water cooled the burn on his arm.

After a moment, he sat up and I let the water melt away from my hands. Mako came over and grabbed my hand and then his brother's, pulling both of us up. He looked grim, and I immediately felt sick. What had happened? Had someone gotten hurt?

"Chief Beifong just finished talking to General Iroh," he said darkly. I looked up at him for a moment before glancing around for Iroh. Where was he? "She just got done helping him take down another couple of bots. They got her." He glanced away for a moment before looking up to meet my gaze. "They got Asami."

**Chapter two is done. I'll be offline for a little while (short summer vacation, yay!) and so I've decided to gift all of you faithful readers with a chapter before I depart. Don't worry, I won't be gone long, though I can't promise how long it'll take me to update another chapter!**

**As always, I ask for forgiveness when it comes to grammatical/spelling issues. I also ask that you take a short minute or two to leave me a review in the box below. Thanks for taking the time to read this! Peace (:**


	3. Pema's Advice

**JJ – I am a one hundred percent first person writer. I remember being fairly young when I first attempted to write in first person instead of omniscient third, and I immediately fell in love with it. Nowadays, I sometimes have a hard time reading books if they're **_**not**_** in first person. Call me prejudiced. And yes, Asami is the one that's been taken. As a viewer of the show I didn't like her because she was a love interest for Mako, but now that he's with Korra, I can allow myself to like her a little more. I felt like she gave the team something that would be missed, and she would also elicit worry from not only Mako but General Iroh. Thanks for reading and reviewing! (;**

**Makorra123 – Thank you! As it turns out, I'm actually going on **_**another**_** trip, which might just be the reason for my sudden burst of inspiration. Have no fear, though, I leave in a week and will be gone for the same amount of time. Perhaps I'll update sooner.**

**fireicegirl16 – Tell me about it! I personally love the Avatar State, but I didn't feel like Korra would have the control needed to go into it in the fray of battle. Unlike Aang, she still needs her spiritual training.**

**JayLiyah – Thank you! I'm glad the pace feels right to readers. A lot of the other fanfictions I've seen are years into the future. I figured that I'd write something that would at least tide me, and hopefully others, until the season two premiere. Thanks for the review!**

**JMV1997 – Well of **_**course**_**. Nothing can be easy for them! Haha!**

**I do not own the Legend of Korra TV series.**

_3: Pema's Advice_

"What do you mean they got her?" I demanded. _Got_ had several meanings. It could mean that she was injured, or maybe they had kidnapped her. Or, I swallowed hard at the thought, she was _dead_. I immediately pushed that thought out of my mind. Katara would be annoyed if I immediately assumed the worst. She said I was prone to doing that.

"They _got_ her," Mako repeated. His eyes looked fiery, ablaze, like he was losing control. I'd never seen him look like that before. That alone made fear spike through my heart. "She's gone."

"Gone _where_?"

"How should I know!?" The words ripped from him like a yell. I was so shocked that I actually didn't say anything right away. That alone was a feat, since I was known for always having a comeback on the tip of my tongue, especially if someone was yelling at _me_. "Chief Beifong just said that Iroh said they were heading back to Asami's car when a van pulled up. Chi-blockers jumped out and took him and Asami down, and then she was gone. He's such an _idiot_."

"Hey," I said a little indignantly. I happened to like General Iroh. He was nice enough, and I think there was a part of me that was really drawn to him. Perhaps it was because he was so much like his grandfather, Firelord Zuko, and the past life in me recognized that. Either way, I couldn't help but come to his defense. It wasn't _his_ fault that the chi-blockers had caught up to him and Asami. They'd gotten us before, too. Or couldn't he remember? "Don't blame Iroh."

"You're taking his side?" Mako asked. He sounded completely aghast, as if I'd just told him something awful, like I was Amon's sister or something else equally as horrifying.

"There are no _sides_." I replied sharply. "And you freaking out about this isn't going to help anything!" The words were slowly getting louder, to the point where Tenzin and Chief Beifong stopped talking to look at us. Bolin was awake and coherent, his sleeve still rolled up to show his electricity burn. He grasped Pabu to his chest as he stared, wide-eyed, at the two of us. When I stepped back and looked at the situation, I could see that both of us were fired up. For a firebender and an almost fully-realized Avatar, getting angry wasn't going to help anything. Destruction was one of fire's properties, and that tended to carry over into our personalities.

Mako's fists clenched tightly, and then he suddenly released them. We were standing so close that I could feel his sigh as it brushed across my cheek. He ran a hand through his hair and looked away from me, his eyebrows drawn together and eyes narrowed, as if he was mad at everybody standing there. I could feel my heart beating wildly in my chest. I had the sudden urge to sit down and meditate, to find my center of balance. Now that I knew what it felt like to be completely in control, there were times where I craved it.

Without looking at me, Mako shook his head and stepped away from me. He stooped in front of his brother, and I knew he was asking Bolin if he was okay. Bolin's bright green eyes watched me as I stared at the two of them. He just nodded to whatever Mako was saying. I bit down on my lip and looked away. After Pema had Rohan, she was spending a lot of time watching him and holding him and taking care of him. The Air Acolytes babysat the others, and Tenzin was always busy trying to rebuild the city. I'd gotten used to having Pema around, looking over my shoulder. She'd, in a way, become a confidante for me. She was happy to see Mako and I together, she told me, but she warned me that while we were blissfully happy for the moment, it may not last like that for long. She'd told me about blowout fights that she had Tenzin had had. They'd seemed awful at the time, she told me, but in the end, working out their problems had only strengthened their relationship.

I wondered if this was our first big fight.

And, of course, it had to be over Asami.

Scowling, I turned away from Bolin and Mako. I thought he was being unreasonable. I understood the reason he was freaking out because I was, too, but I wasn't accusing him of taking sides. He wanted to blame Iroh for the reason that Asami had been captured. But where had _he_ been when I'd been captured? Did he freak out this much when they discovered that I was missing? Did he look wild, like he'd just had his heart ripped out?

"Korra." The voice was calm and low, coming from just over my shoulder. I looked up. Tenzin stood just behind me, blocking my view of Mako and Bolin. He brushed a hand over his beard, as if he was fixing it after a scuffle. His blue arrow tattooed onto his forehead made his eyes look icier than they really were. At least, that was what I imagined. I'd never seen him _without_ his airbending tattoos. Smoothing out his red and yellow robes, he asked, "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," I replied. That wasn't exactly true – there was an ache in my shoulder where I'd hit the ground hard enough to jar my body all the way down to my bones – but that suddenly seemed unimportant. Asami had been taken, Bolin was injured, and Mako was acting like the end of the world was upon us. "Are you?"

Tenzin sighed. "I'll be better when all of this is over." He glanced at me, his eyes seeming to understand what was going on inside my head. "Come," he said, motioning for me to follow him. "We better return to Air Temple Island. Iroh is already there. We can get what information we can from him and form a plan to retrieve Asami."

As he led me to where Chief Beifong and the metalbenders stood, I shot a glance over to Mako. He was helping Bolin stand up. Pabu balanced on Mako's shoulder for a moment before leaping to Bolin's head. He perched there for a moment longer before squirreling down to the earthbender's shoulder and tucking his head under Bolin's chin. I didn't say anything to them. I didn't even bother motioning towards them. If they wanted to come they would. If they wanted to return to their stupid arena loft, they could.

# # #

Iroh looked beat as I stepped into the room, following Tenzin. Pema held Rohan close to her chest as Meelo picked through whatever was on the plate in front of him. I'd seen Jinora perched in a tree reading a book, which was the usual for her. Ikki was standing right over Iroh's shoulder, her eyes bright as she questioned him. At least, it sounded like she was questioning him as I followed Tenzin in.

"Where there a lot of them? Did they cheat? Did they use those machines?" She asked in quick succession. Iroh sighed and looked over at her. It looked like he was about to answer her, too, when he realized that we'd walked into the room. He snapped to attention, his back straight despite the bruises I could see forming on his skin. One of his shirt sleeves had been ripped away, and the skin was bright red.

"Tenzin," Iroh said. I immediately sat on the bench next to him and pulled the water out of his glass. Letting it coat my hands, I waited until it just barely started to glow before pressing it to his arm, healing the skin and the muscle underneath. I tried to focus on my work while listening to what Tenzin and Iroh were talking about. Bolin was silent as he sat down across from us, looking completely interested in the story to come. Mako leaned against the wall silently, his amber eyes narrowed as he watched me and Iroh. Mako had never really like the general for reasons unknown to me, and he let it show.

"What happened?" I finally asked when I decided that I could do no more to his arm. I sent the water out the window and to the plants. Bolin watched for a moment before returning his attention to Iroh.

Iroh sighed. "Asami and I went to get something to eat. We were walking back to the car when a van pulled around the corner. It nearly hit us, but I pushed Asami into a nearby alley. At least seven chi-blockers climbed out of the back. They were all wearing Equalist clothing," he added, directing the last part to me. I let my gaze drop for a second. He was probably just letting me know that they were still out there. He didn't mean to _blame_ me. "We tried to fight them off, but there were so many of them. They blocked my firebending, and then they teamed up on us, drawing us apart. It was almost like they wanted to get Asami and me as far away from each other as they could. In a blink, they were climbing back into the van, taking Asami with them. I tried to catch up, but they disappeared around a corner. I kept looking around, but no one seemed surprised that the van had just pulled through. Nobody could even direct me which way they had gone. And that's when the bots came. I tried to fend them off, but I wouldn't have had any luck if Chief Beifong hadn't shown up when she did."

Tenzin pet his beard again. I'd realized long ago that he did that when he was thinking or confused. He was probably wondering where they had taken her, and what they wanted with Asami. She was a non-bender, which didn't matter much anymore because Amon wasn't there to block a bender's abilities. Maybe, I thought, they didn't care who they captured. They just wanted one of us, knowing that if they got one the rest would come running.

What if it was a trap?

"What if it's a trap?" I asked. Bolin started to nod, as if that was making perfect sense to him. It made sense to me. And it was a possibility. They either wanted her because they wanted information from her, or they wanted her because they knew that we would be running to find her.

"Are you suggesting that we don't go after her?" Mako interjected.

Shocked, I couldn't do anything but blink for a second or two. Then I finally spit out, "I didn't say that! I'm just saying that we shouldn't blindly go after her. We need to find out where she is and make a plan. They can't capture more of us. We're already outnumbered." I said.

"How are we going to find her?" Bolin asked.

I sighed. "I don't know yet. We'll have to start from the beginning. We'll have to go back to where Asami and Iroh were attacked, and trace the steps from there. They've got those underground tunnels, remember?"

"That means she could be anywhere in Republic City," Iroh said. He sounded upset by it. I figured that he was, because in the past few weeks I thought that I'd seen him and Asami together more and more. They seemed perfect for each other, too. They were excellent fighters and they came from the same walk of life. Sort of like me and Mako, I thought. He had to grow up quickly and take care of his younger brother while living on the streets. I had to take my destiny in my own hands and start training from the time I was five, secluded from everything and everyone else.

"We'll have to start from the beginning," I said again, looking to Tenzin for agreement. Team Avatar could argue over what to do from here on out, but if there was anyone we all respected it was Tenzin.

He pet his beard again and then looked at us with searching eyes. "I believe the best course of action is to do as Korra said. We must follow their tracks from the beginning. I'm sure that Lin would be willing to help, as well."

Chief Beifong blinked a few times. She send a glare Tenzin's way, and not for the first time I wondered how in the world they'd ever been a couple. Tenzin was all about being calm and thinking things through. Chief Beifong, although she liked to complain about my spontaneity, was more like me than either of us had imagined. Besides that, she was a force to be reckoned with. So was Pema, I realized, but in a different way. "I've got Equalists to find, Tenzin." She said sharply.

"Lin, Equalists have Asami. We find her, we find them." He gave her a look.

Finally, Chief Beifong sighed, rolling her eyes as she crossed her arms. "Fine. I'll assist in any way that I can, as will my team. But beware that we are not at your beck and call, Avatar." The words were a little harsh, but there was a softness to her eyes that hadn't been there before. She'd given up her bending for me, and even since I returned it the two of us had been better friends. But that didn't mean that we saw eye-to-eye. We were both still too stubborn to let the other be right. "If you'll excuse me," she said, stepping out of the room. Pema watched her go silently, and then her gaze met mine. She seemed to try to be saying something to me, but I didn't get a chance to try and understand it.

Mako was suddenly standing in front of the table. "What are we waiting for? Let's go."

"We can't just run out there, Mako," I said. "I want to find her, too, I really do. But we've got to play this smart." I told him. It was true. I wanted to jump out there and find out just who was stupid enough to mess with us as much as he did, but there were others that I had to keep in mind. He would never forgive me if Bolin was taken next, and we'd be in deep trouble if Iroh was captured. If Mako was taken, I'd be upset, and I'd like to think that he would be upset if I was taken. Besides, I was the Avatar, and this was technically my team. I needed to be a leader.

And that didn't mean that he had to like everything I was saying. It just meant that he was supposed to respect them. But he couldn't even give me that. Instead, he turned on his heel and stalked out of the room, muttering something under his breath. I didn't understand a word of what he said, but I had the feeling I wouldn't have been able to hear it anyway, over the sound of my heart breaking.

# # #

The next day, Tenzin went into the city with Iroh. I was instructed to stay behind and train with Jinora, Ikki, and Meelo. Bolin came out to watch.

I didn't see Mako at all.

# # #

The nightmare was back. This time, I was in the pro-bending arena, standing on a slab of stone surrounded completely by water. The glass above was broken from when Amon had launched his attack. The stands were eerily empty. Panic surged in my chest as I looked around me, determined to find a place to hide. I could always duck underneath the platform. The water, I thought, would give me some leverage. But then I remembered that Amon was originally like the Water Tribe, like myself, and realized that hiding from him wouldn't do me any good. If I wanted to get out of this, I would have to face him.

And then I went through what had happened, all over again. Amon held me against my will. He took away my bending. Except this time, Mako wasn't there to save me. In my dream, I thought that maybe it was for the better. Mako wasn't in danger if he wasn't around Amon. His bending could remain intact. But my dream just escalated, abandoning any sense of truth. Amon used his ability to bloodbend to torture me until tears ran down my cheeks and I felt like I couldn't breathe.

And then I woke up. I realized, in that moment, that Amon had only been partly right. I felt like nothing, completely useless, without my bending.

But I really _was_ nothing without my friends.

# # #

I still hadn't seen or talked to Mako since the day Asami was abducted. The morning after my nightmare, I slunk into the kitchen. Pema was sittng at the table, holding Rohan. She looked down into his sleeping face, and I wondered what it was like to feel that peaceful. I couldn't remember the last time I'd truly felt _at peace_. From the moment I was a kid, I was training all the time, straining to make sure that I mastered whatever I was training for. When I moved to Republic City it was to follow the intention of learning how to airbend, something that had been absent in my life and had always worried me. And then I'd been faced with Amon and the Equalists, who hated me just for being a bender.

Where was the peace?

I slumped in my seat as the Air Acolyte placed a plate in front of me. I looked up to thank her as she smiled down at me before exiting the room, leaving me alone with Rohan and Pema. I stirred my food, but I didn't eat any of it. I didn't feel hungry, not after realizing through a dream that Mako was doing his best to avoid me.

"A fight always feels hard." I looked up sharply. Pema was looking at me with kind eyes. Her brown hair was tied back as it always was, and her red and yellow acolyte robes hung on her. She smiled at me kindly, and said, "You and Mako. It'll get better, I promise."

"How do you know?" I asked. I was sort of surprised to hear the words come out of mouth. I had planned to tell her that everything was fine. I was focusing on my training, like Tenzin wanted me to, and he was trying to find Asami, which was something that definitely needed to be done in a timely manner. I didn't know how long we had, or if there was a time limit on getting her back from the Equalists. All I knew was that I hated being stuck in that stupid prison Tarrlok had locked me in, and I'd been in it for less time than she'd been missing.

"You know the story about how Tenzin and I found each other." She said. I just continued to look at her, and she smiled again. "When I first met him, he was with Lin Beifong. The two of them were a couple for the longest time, and everyone thought that they'd end up together. Even Katara, I think. But one day I gathered the courage to go tell him how much I cared for him, and he realized that his relationship with Lin would be better if it was of the platonic kind."

Pema shifted, and Rohan let out a little cry. She tended to him for a moment, and then continued on with her story. "I loved Tenzin from the very beginning of our relationship. But there were times when the two of us would fight, especially when it came to Lin." She looked a little bothered by saying that out loud, but she didn't stop. "I was always worried that Tenzin cared for Lin, still. Even just recently, when she had her bending blocked and he chased after her, I found myself jealous. But then I remembered that Tenzin loved me. He and Lin weren't right for each other. They were just friends, but friends that still cared about the well-being of each other."

I looked at her for a long moment and then said, "No offense, but what does this have to do with me and Mako?"

Pema brushed her fingers over Rohan's short hair. "It's nearly the same story, except with different characters. Mako is Tenzin, Asami is Lin, and you are me." She smiled broadly at that. "In the same way that Tenzin cares for Lin, Mako cares for Asami. Just because they care about each other doesn't mean that he loves her more than he loves you."

"But what if he does? What if he leaves me?" I whispered. I'd never voiced the worry out loud. I hated to feel like such a wimp. There were things that I had to focus on, things that would be more crucial to the future. I shouldn't be so wrapped up in what Mako did and didn't want, not at a time like this. I had to find a friend, and I had a city that I needed to rebuild….

"You should have seen him when you went missing. If you think he's freaking out now, then he was nearly having a heart attack when you were gone." She smiled softly at me, reaching out to rest her hand over mine. "He cares about you more than you could ever imagine. Just because he doesn't spell it out for you doesn't mean it's not true. The two of you had a fight, and it's common with couples, even ones that are destined to be together. Suck it up, apologize to each other, and find a compromise. _Nothing_ this insignificant should tear apart your relationship."

"Asami's missing, Pema. I don't think that's _insignificant_."

"It's not. But your argument about it is." Rohan let out a loud wail, then, and she hugged him closer, standing up from the table. "Remember what I said, Korra. Now eat your breakfast. You have a big day ahead of you."

**I think this is a relatively short chapter, but my mind's sort of blanked out right now and I'm still trying to fit all of the plot together. I honestly don't think this is going to be a very long fanfiction, but we'll see. I have a way of ranting that just lengthens my word count. Besides, I realized that it had been several **_**months**_** since I'd updated. I hate it when other people do that, so I'm so very sorry it took me that long.**

**Like I told someone earlier, I'll be leaving in about a week for a week-long vacation. Hopefully on my return I'll be able to start the next chapter (given that I have ten other fanfics that I need to catch up on and write chapters for.)**

**I uploaded this chapter without editing. Hopefully the spelling and grammar isn't too hideous.**

**Thank you so much for taking the time to read this. I would really appreciate it if you took a moment to leave me a review in the box below. Thanks! Peace (:**


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